North Shore Baseball Association (NSBA) is pleased to announce that it has partnered with Travail Baseball Development to launch a 18U College Prep (CP) program!
College Prep is a high level competitive baseball program targeted at highly skilled Grade 11 and Grade 12 baseball players looking to move to the next level after high school. NSBA will continue to operate a volunteer-run 18U AAA program which will be an important development vehicle for future CP participants and those players who choose not to pursue CP but want a competitive baseball environment. CP program details follow, including coaching staff, initial schedule and high level development programming.
The Head Coach for our College Prep program will be Gabriel Manalo. Gabe is an experienced coach who has worked with the Travail program since 2021 and is currently completing his MSc (Kinesiology) with a focus on baseball skill learning. Gabe has been a player and coach for over 17 years, with a focus on hitting and outfield skills, and will work in partnership with selected Travail and volunteer coaches to provide an advanced development program for high performance athletes seeking to play at the college level. Among other previous experience, Gabe has worked with 17U AAA / Elite programs in Ontario as well as skill instruction with Baseline Sports and was previously a player on the University of Toronto Varsity Blues program.
Skill development coaches will include Tyson Gillies and Michael Crouse among others, while assistant coaches may include a mix of volunteer and paid coaches, depending on the final roster.
Overall Program Schedule (All indoor sessions at Travail East Van Facility – 2696 Nootka St):
Development Sessions (open enrolment – schedule subject to change):
- Days: Jan 19th, Jan 21st, Jan 23rd, Jan 26th, Jan 28th, Jan 30th, Feb 2nd, Feb 4th (Mon/Thurs/Sat) 9-10 PM, 8 athletes per session, 2 sessions only per athlete
- Dates: first come first serve
- Training Focus: general assessments, advanced fielding and hitting, coachability
- Cost: $100/player for two sessions
- Register: https://northshorebaseball.spappz.com/event?id=162
Tryout Sessions (shortlisted players – schedule subject to change):
- Dates: Feb 9-12th, Thurs-Sun 9-10 PM, 8 athletes per session, 1-2 sessions per athlete
- Training Focus: formalized assessments, numbers ie. velo speed, accuracy, etc.
- Dates will be assigned
- Cost: $100/player
Team Selection (initial roster communicated – functional team roster for ~16 athletes)
- Date: February 13th
Workouts/Late Tryouts (1-2 roster slots open) – schedule subject to change
- Dates: Feb 18th-March 3rd (Tues-Sun) – 8:30 PM-10:00 PM (2-3 days a week, 8 athletes per session)
- There may also be outdoor sessions in this time frame depending on weather, field and coach availability.
- Training Focus: regular scheduled practices. Late cuts from other teams may attend 1 session max
- Cost of this training will be included in the final team fees. A deposit may be required by February 18th to participate
Final Selection Communicated (if necessary) by March 3
Following team selection, the team will move to a concentrated pre-season development program which will prepare the team for the start of play, including a possible pre-season tournament. Additional details will be forthcoming for those selected.
Players joining the CP program should be prepared for a significant time and financial commitment, with cost estimated to be in the $3,000 – $4,000 range for the full season. The final budget will be determined by the NSBA executive in consultation with the head coach following completion of the detailed season plan over the coming weeks.
For any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact NSBA’s President, Nicholas Van Dyk, or Vice President, Jon Alpen, who are cc’d on this email.
Board of Directors
North Shore Baseball Association